THREE HUNDRED AFRICAN PEOPLE have been
fighting for more than two years to obtain regular permits and documents
from the French authorities. Their action began with the occupation of
the Church of St. Ambroise in Paris. A "college of mediators"
composed of distinguished French personalities tried unsuccessfully to
negotiate with the French government. Ten of them went on hunger strike
for fifty two days. This case happens at a time when the French government
has been criticised for its human rights violations by the international
community (Report
of Mr Glele-Ahanhanzo, Special Rapporteur for the United Nations, condemnation
for improper detention of asylum seekers by the European Court of Human
Rights in Strasbourg, report by the International Federation for Human
Rights).